According to Romanian media, large investors have already approached electricity transmission system operator Transelectrica to get approvals for their projects. Several investors could bring over 2 billion euros in Romania in the next five years for the development of 1.4 GW of new wind power capacities in what seems to be the second wave of renewable investments in the country.
The interest is likely linked to the EU’s transition towards a climate-neutral economy. For example, Austrian Verbund has resumed a 57 MW project in Tulcea, with the new commissioning date scheduled for 2024. The estimated investment should be about 85 million euros, based on an average cost of 1.5 million euros per MW of installed wind capacity. According to data provided by Transelectrica, currently, there are about 307 MW in wind projects that have obtained network connection contracts, including the abovementioned Verbund’s project. In addition, another 460 MW obtained the technical approvals for connection. Most of these approvals were issued last year. The first wave of renewable investments in Romania happened in 2009-2014 period, when Romania attracted over 4.5 billion euros in RES investments, thus being the tenth country in the world in terms of investment in wind power. The wave was triggered by a favorable state support scheme, which was later significantly reduced due to increasing costs for end consumers.
